Chairman: Terry Green

Vice Chairman: Terry Jones

1. Call to order and self-introductions
    

   Those in attendance were:

    

   Terry Green (Chairman)	Rickie Grooms	Charles Schumacher
   Terry Jones (Vice Chairman)	Jeffrey Hinkle	Bill Shipe
   Jeff Bryant	Steve Jones	Greg Stevenson
   Sig Bo	Janet Krolczyk	Mike Taylor
   John Carew	Bob McClanahan	Doug Williams
   Chris Cascio	Bryce Mobley	James Woody
   Keith Cates	John E. Rabchuk	Michael Zagula
   Denise Corrales	Mike Rea	NRMCA STAFF:
   Richard DeBoer	Doug Rexroad	David Ayers
   Thomas Foley	Doug Rigsby	Gary Mullings
   James Forbes	Douglas Ruhlin	Greg Vickers

    

2. Review of the NRMCA’s anti-trust statement
   
   Chairman Green advised the committee about compliance with the Association’s antitrust policy.
    

3. Opening remarks by the presiding officer, Green
   
   Chairman Green welcomed and thanked the committee members for their participation.
    

4. Recognition of outgoing OES Chairman John Carew
   
   Chairman Green thanked immediate past Chairman John Carew for his services to the committee over the past two years. Let the minutes show that Chairman Green continued the “passing of the hat” tradition by presenting Mr. Carew with a Texas-style “cowboy hardhat" (Chairman Carew had given his predecessor, Chairman Mike Taylor, a Wisconsin “Cheese-Head Hat”).
    

5. Approval of the minutes of the October 27, 2007 Phoenix, AZ OES Committee meeting
   
   ACTION ITEM: A motion to accept the minutes of the OES Committee meeting on October 27, 2007 was presented, seconded and approved by voice vote.
    

6. REPORTS FROM TASK GROUP CHAIRMEN
    

   1. Operations Task Group – Moore
       

      • Due to the absence of Chairman Paul Moore, Mr. Green gave the report.

      • Mr. Mike Zagula volunteered to serve as Vice Chairman of the Operations task group.

      • ACTION ITEM: A motion nominating Mike Zagula as Vice Chairman of the Operations Task Group was presented, seconded and approved by voice vote.

      • Outgoing Operations Task Group Chairman Al Benjamin was recognized for his service to the committee.

      • Concrete Works Seminar Topics: The following topics were submitted for Operations Seminars for the 2008 Forum.

        1. LEED credits for using recycled materials

        2. Sustainability: reducing a ready mixed plant’s carbon footprint

        3. Fuel usage & efficiency: short term options and future alternatives

        4. Minimizing your ready mixed plant’s electrical bill

        5. 2010 Diesel Engine Emissions Standards

      • The 2008 Fleet Benchmarking Survey entry deadline has been extended until May 1. Committee members in attendance were encouraged to make sure their companies participate.

      • Mixer Driver Championship: A group of competition judges traveled to the driver championship area to discuss event setup and logistics. Several issues concerning the event were discussed. Mr. Vickers reported that a webinar is set for May 15th to give states and NRMCA members information on “How to Set Up & Administer a Mixer Driver Championship Event”. A written guide will be made available by the same date. Members of the committee acknowledged that the growth of the program has made clearer guidelines necessary for eligibility to participate in the Mixer Driver Championship. Participants for a small task force to write eligibility criteria for were solicited. Volunteers included Keith Cates, Rickie Grooms, Steve Jones, Doug Rigsby and Dave Williams. 

      • The development of the new Fleet Manager Certification Course was discussed. Several topics for inclusion and prioritization of those topics were agreed upon by the Operations Task Group. Volunteers to form a small task force to review course materials during the development process included Chris Cascio, Keith Cates, Terry Green, Rickie Grooms and Dave Williams. Al Benjamin, Paul Moore and Tom Pittman will also be asked to participate in the course materials review panel.
         

   2. Environmental Task Group – Corrales
       

      • Madame Chairman Corrales recognized outgoing Task Group Chairman Jim Forbes and thanked him for his service.

      • The U.S. EPA 3-year enforcement initiative which targets ready mixed concrete was summarized. The task group wanted the association to solicit EPA on a federal level to clarify the reasons for and intentions of the enforcement initiative.

      • Mr. Ruhlin asked that a member of the Environmental Task Group meet with Federal EPA with NRMCA.

      • NRMCA's meeting with EPA should include request for information on what the EPA has found so far during inspections on this initiative, not merely reasons for our industry be singled out.

      • Follow-up meetings with the EPA should include:

        1. Continued dialogue with the EPA, and

        2. More importantly, how assistance is to be provided to membership.

      • The Memorandum of Agreement with EPA Region III was discussed. It was praised by Mr. Carew.

      • Two members  expressed concern regarding the purpose of the agreement, expectations from EPA as a result of agreement, and potential fall-out if goals of the agreement are not met

      • MCET state-wide grant/pilot was discussed by Mr. Ayers.

      • The task group requests that NRMCA closely monitor MCET to ensure that appropriate training materials be created.

      • The Green Star Program was summarized. Webinars for Green-Star are scheduled monthly in order to update the membership.

      • Environmental Seminars for the 2008 OES Forum & Expo in Nashville

      • The 2008 Environmental Excellence Awards application form is on the website with little change.

      • Environmental Course Update
         

   3. Safety Task Group – S. Jones
       

      • Chairman Jones thanks the Safety Task Group for starting on time and ending on time while completing the full agenda.

      • Chairman Jones thanked past-Chairman Terry Jones for all his hard work and dedication

      • Discussed the topics for the safety session

      • Discussed the final updated generic concrete MSDS with Hex-Chrome language added

      • Two members expressed concern that Hex-chrome language was added, but acknowledged that it must be there.

      • Discussed the potential of Computer Based Training. Several committee members, notably Bryce Mobley and Chairman Green, voiced their opinions that webinars are not a very good platform for training drivers and other hourly employees. Due to variable schedules and whatnot, the Task Group expressed a preference for on-demand, web-based training for driver training programs.

      • The new safety modules could not be reviewed because of time, but Ayers will set up a Webinar-based review system for the LO/TO and Mixer Drum Cleaning.

      • OES Chairman Terry Green showed the group a few examples of Drive-Cam and an issue with the air-ride seats. The seat belts lock the person to the seat, but the air-ride mechanism does not lock down, and employees can still hit their heads on the roof of the cab in the event of an accident.
         

7. Fleet Manager’s Certification Course, Vickers
    

   Plans for the development and rollout of the Fleet Manager’s course were reviewed. Discussion of how the new course would fit into the Association’s STEPS program along with current Operations and Production offerings resulted in the following vote:
    

   • ACTION ITEM: A motion to recommend to the Educational Activities Committee that STEPS certification criteria be modified to grant certification to those who complete any four of the five courses within Operations and Production career track was presented, seconded and approved by voice vote.
      

8. Discussion of the 2008 OES Forum & Expo (ConcreteWorks) in Nashville, Tennessee, Mullings
    

   • Attendance: Mr. Mullings mentioned that attendance at this year’s ConcreteWorks could reach several hundred, due to the consolidation of the OES Forum & Expo, the BAC Conference, and several other committee, division and bureau meetings. Mr. Vickers mentioned that a delegation of 15 or more Latin American attendees will attend ConcreteWorks. Their attendance is part of an outreach effort leading up to NRMCA's participation in the first "Ready Mixed Congress of the Americas," to be held in Argentina in November 2010.
      

   • BAC Conference
      

   • National Driver Championship  (Zagula, T. Jones)

     • Seminar topics and speakers

     • General session

     • Monday night dinner

     • Tour locations
        

9. 2008 Joseph E. Carpenter Award, Green
   
   Chairman Green appealed to the committee to nominate candidates for the Carpenter Award prior to the next OES Committee meeting on October 18, 2008.
    

10. Educational Activities Committee Report, Pittman
    
    In Mr. Pittman’s absence, no EAC report was offered. Mr. Mullings, Mr. Ayers and Mr. Vickers appealed to the committee members in attendance to continue attending and sending their key personnel to NRMCA educational offerings.
     

11. International Driver Championship, Mullings
    
    Mr. Mullings reported that the scheduled event for ConExpo-ConAgg 2008 had to be postponed, due to no driver availability as a result of the short notice given to potential international partners. A short presentation and demonstration of the event was given to a group of international visitors in Las Vegas at ConExpo-ConAgg on March 12, and the 2011 ConExpo-ConAgg show will be the site of the inaugural International Mixer Drivers Championship event.
     

12. RMC Research Foundation Report, Lefevre
    
    Included in the meeting binder for all those in attendance was a CD-ROM that highlighted recent activities of the Ready Mixed Concrete Research & Education Foundation.
     

13. Driver of the Year Award Program, DeBoer
    
    Past Chairman DeBoer led the discussion of the DOY program, which centered on how to encourage heavier participation. Recent competitions have had dwindling participation. Some committee members mentioned that there is a perception that only incredible lifetime drivers win the competition, thus limiting the incentive to place a driver in the competition. The NRMCA executive committee had suggested perhaps a "Driver Hall of Fame" as an alternative. Mr. DeBoer said that he would assemble the DOY judging team to discuss the issue.
     

14. 2009 Spring Meeting, Green
    
    No site was selected, but the committee thought the spring meeting should be where ConcreteWorks is located.
     

15. 2009 ConcreteWorks
    
    The top three choices were:
     

    • Red Rock Canyon in Las Vegas

    • Portland, Oregon

    • Seattle, Washington
       

16. TMMB, CPMB & VMMB Updates

    
    Both TMMB and CPMB have given money to support the National Driver Championship. The CPMB has recently developed a DVD on "Safety at a ready mixed concrete plant," which was distributed to all in attendance.
     

17. Other Business
    
    None
     

18. Adjournment until the next meeting of the Operations, Environmental and Safety Committee, on Saturday, October 18, 2008 at ConcreteWorks. 
    
    Chairman Green received a motion and a second, and adjourned the meeting.